About
Sometimes one payment covers more than one thing, like an Amazon order with both packaging and office supplies in it, or a charge that arrives with a credit already applied. Splitting records what actually happened, without touching anything at your bank.
A large miscategorized payment is the fastest way to make a dashboard misleading, so this is worth doing on the big ones even if you skip it elsewhere. You can split any transaction, at any time, and undo it later.
1. Split a transaction
Go to Transactions.
Select the transaction and click More actions → Split.
Next to Split by ①, choose dollar value or percentage. To record a charge and a credit that arrived together, turn on Split to positive and negative amounts ②.
Pick a category and enter an amount for each line. Use + Add a split for more lines, or Split equally ① to divide evenly.
Watch Left to split ② at the bottom right. It counts down to zero when your split is complete.
Click Apply once, or Apply always to reuse the same percentage breakdown for this payee.
Note: Splitting works on a single transaction, not a group. If you're looking at a grouped payee, toggle off Show groups first. See Clearing the transactions that need your input.
2. Your splitting options
Option | What it does | When to use it |
Split by $ or % | Split by dollar amount or by percentage | Percentage, when the mix is roughly the same every time |
Split to positive and negative amounts | Record a charge and a credit that arrived as one transaction | A refund or credit applied to a purchase |
Split equally | Divide evenly across all lines in one click | A shared cost with no obvious breakdown |
You can also split in the original currency or in USD, and mark individual lines Personal for personal spending. See Marking personal spending on a business account.
Example: a charge with a credit applied
You paid $488.64. That was really a $498.64 purchase with a $10 credit applied to it.
Turn on Split to positive and negative amounts and enter:
$498.64 - the category that applies to what you actually bought. Make sure the money direction has Out selected.
$10 - the credit. Make sure the money direction has In selected.
Your spending now reflects the real cost of the purchase, and the credit shows up separately instead of quietly shrinking the expense.
About Apply always on a split
Apply always works on percentage splits only.
Set a percentage breakdown for a payee and Margins reuses it for every future transaction from them. A split by dollar value applies to that one transaction, since next month's amount won't be the same.